Friday, 30 November 2012

The civil war in Syria has created a
humanitarian crisis. Writer and journalist Hadani Ditmar discusses the
crisis, as well as a new book she reviewed for the Globe & Mail
called 'Women in the Crossfire" - a compelling account for what it's
like to be a woman right now in Syria.

FROM THE FRONTLINE TO THE SANCTUARY A BENEFIT FOR DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS and the RED CROSS AND THEIR WORK IN THE MIDDLE EASTAS THE SYRIAN REFUGEE CRISIS GROWS AND THE HUMANITARIAN SITUATION IN GAZA WORSENS, COME SPEND AN EVENING CELEBRATING THE BEST OF MIDDLE EASTERN CULTURE, and SHOW SOLIDARITY WITH CIVILIANS CAUGHT IN THE CROSS-FIRE,

Congratulations to Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority, and all Palestinians, on the profoundly affirmative vote at the UN.

Despite John Baird's efforts to champion the cause of Israel, in apparent support of Israeli unilateralism and in passionate opposition to Palestinians thinking and acting for themselves, the world (in the form of the UN) voted in support of Palestine, on the anniversary of the date that Israel was affirmed in the same body.

Even the BBC has failed to notice our minister's efforts, so if this is what Baird hoped to be remembered for, it is just too bad that he has placed himself on the wrong side of history.

The United States naturally remained in Israel's corner but, alongside
it, was to be found largely a small collection of diplomatic minnows
including the Western Pacific Territories of Palau and Micronesia.

Uganda's Parliamentary Speaker, Rebecca Kadaga, was received with a
welcome rally upon her return to Uganda, following a conflict with
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister at the Inter-Parliamentary Union conference
in Quebec City on October 25. Kadaga is reportedly vowing to do
entirely the opposite of what Baird had urged, by pushing to resurrect
the infamous Anti-Homosexuality Bill...

The problem detected is plainly stated:

Part of this arises because of an increased sensitivity to other
nations imposing their will on Africa, something that has taken place
overtly and covertly throughout Africa's entire remembered history. (source)

This is, I suggest, the reality gap between Baird, his US parallels and fellow minnows, and much of the rest of the world, including constituents in the countries voting against the order yesterday.

Self-regency is important. It is a fundamental aspect of democracy. We do not believe that Canadian nor US leadership has a more accurate view of what is good for Palestine than Palestinians do.

It is neither the US nor Canada's job to control the path to peaceful resolutions in the Middle East: at the end of the day, it is none of their business. To support the process, yes, but not to dictate it.

~

If we found the saturation-levels of coverage of the recent American elections tiring, here in Canada, imagine what it would be like to live in Gaza:

HOW does it end in Gaza?
This has been the issue with all the self-defeating Israeli military
offensives of the past 16 years — Operation Grapes of Wrath in Lebanon,
Operation Cast Lead in Gaza and now Operation Pillar of Defense, all of
them, not coincidentally, initiated on the eve of national elections in
Israel.

Roger Cohen, NY Times Op Ed & International Herald Tribune for full article

How it ended was, a ceasefire, and all hope that the ceasefire will hold.

As the days of violence unfolded, however, Baird and Harper did not loudly condemn Israel's "unilateral action." They said, Every state has a right to defend itself.

What is true for Israel is true for Palestinians, and it is a real shame that Canada chose not to support diplomatic and "symbolic" actions that would both encourage and empower Palestinians, and strengthen the possibility of meaningful negotiations for peace. The facts of the occupation and blockade seem to have remained invisible to them, but happily and luckily, not to the rest of the world.

OTTAWA — With hope of an Israel-Gaza ceasefire beckoning Tuesday,
Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird hailed the “miracle” of a Zionist
Israel while U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton began the hard
diplomatic work of brokering an end to the violence.

Speaking to a glittering Jewish community fundraising gala, Baird
called the birth of Israel a “miracle to behold,” describing it as “a
phoenix-like rising … from a barren desert to the dynamic country we see
today.” source, National Post

It is appropriate that ministers visit constituents, however, Mr. Baird seems to be unaware that the "barren desert" is a
myth created to obscure the active and forceful dispossession of the Palestinian people, and
to be unwilling to look at the truth of the region-- generations of displaced people living in camp conditions-- much less speak
and act to ensure just resolutions for all.

As with Uganada, the paternalistic shine through which our leadership views the world will continue to bring unexpected, undesirable results, until the maturity and humility point is reached, and outdated and unattractive partialism is cast aside.

Roger Cohen continued:

Gilad Sharon, the son of Ariel Sharon who orchestrated Israel’s
withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, has an idea for an ending. He expressed it
this way in The Jerusalem Post:

“We need to flatten entire neighborhoods in Gaza. Flatten all of Gaza.
The Americans didn’t stop with Hiroshima — the Japanese weren’t
surrendering fast enough, so they hit Nagasaki, too. There should be no
electricity in Gaza, no gasoline or moving vehicles, nothing. Then
they’d really call for a cease-fire.”

Atomic bombs, blackness, stillness, nothingness — Sharon allows himself
to indulge the old Israeli dream that the Palestinian people should just
disappear. But of course they do not. They regroup. They find new
leaders. They endure with hatred of Israel reignited by loss.

This is an old story. As early as 1907, Yitzhak Epstein, a Zionist,
wrote an article called “A Hidden Question” in which he observed: “We
have forgotten one small matter: There is in our beloved land an entire
nation, which has occupied it for hundreds of years and has never
thought to leave it.” (source)

~

Hours before Hamas strongman Ahmed Jabari was assassinated, he received
the draft of a permanent truce agreement with Israel, which included
mechanisms for maintaining the cease-fire in the case of a flare-up
between Israel and the factions in the Gaza Strip. This, according to
Israeli peace activist Gershon Baskin, who helped mediate between Israel
and Hamas in the deal to release Gilad Shalit and has since then
maintained a relationship with Hamas leaders.~Israeli Peace Activist (Haaretz)

Mr. Baird announced Friday morning that he is temporarily recalling
Canadian ambassadors to the UN and the Middle East to consult them on
their next steps, and reviewing Canada’s relationship with the
Palestinian Authority. But in an interview with CBC News, Mr. Baird said
the Canadian reaction “will be responsible and will be deliberate.”

Before
the vote, Canada had warned of potential retaliatory steps against the
Palestinians – including private warnings to Palestinian representatives
that it might close their delegation in Ottawa.

On Friday,
however, Mr. Baird ruled out that step: “We’re not, obviously, looking
at breaking off relations with the Palestinian Authority,” he said. ...

However, Mr.
Baird’s warning of retaliation has already provoked a stark response
from the Palestinian Authority, whose chief negotiator said Canada has
“disqualified” itself from any future role in the Middle East peace
process with its vitriolic opposition to upgraded UN status for
Palestinians.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said that
Canadian threats of reprisals and Mr. Baird’s decision to personally
campaign against the Palestinian resolution at the UN have ruled Ottawa
out of a future role.

“I believe this government is more Israeli
than the Israelis, more settler than the settlers,” he said in an
interview with The Globe and Mail. “I think they have disqualified
themselves from playing any role in the Middle East peace process.”
~The Globe & Mail

Dedicated to the memory of his father, the eleven poems explore memories
of his growing up with the Grand River, which flows through the Six
Nations Territory, always in the background or foreground. Moses reads
this selection of lyrical poems backed by the original contemporary
classical compositions of David DeLeary, better known for his work with
Seventh Fire and Jacques and the Shakey Boys.
The CD features stunning
cover art based on paintings by Shelley Niro. The collection insert includes the texts of the recorded poems plus a
bonus poem not included on the recording, Questions From A Canoe. The CD is distributed by Exile Editions.

“The only poet I knew about growing up,” Moses admits, “was Emily
Pauline Johnson. We could almost see her house from our porch. … Her
most famous poem, still, is The Song My Paddles Sings, so maybe this
project is also a nod in her direction.”

"He was born the 11th of 12 children on the 6th of December, 1951 in a
snow bank. That is to say, he was born in a tent pitched in a snow bank (in one awful hurry!)
on an island in a lake in the remotest reaches of northwestern Manitoba
where it meets the Northwest Territories, Saskatchewan and what, since
1999, has been called Nunavut. His caribou-hunting family traversing the
tundra, as always in those days, by dogsled, this lake – called Maria (pronounced "Ma-rye-ah") – is situated some 200 kilometres north of the Indian reserve (Barren Lands)
to which he belongs, the village for which is called Brochet
("Bro-shay"). He grew up NOT on the reserve, however, but rather in the
spectacularly beautiful natural landscape that is Canada's sub-Arctic,
an un-peopled region of hundreds of lakes, endless forests of spruce and
pine, and great herds of caribou. Today (as for the past eleven years), he divides his year equally between, in summer, a cottage on a lake in the heart of Ojibway (and French) Ontario just south of Sudbury (from whence hails his partner of 25 years)
and, in winter, a seaside apartment i/n the south of France. At both of
these locales -- i.e. Canada and France -- he is currently hard at work
on his second and, as yet, untitled novel."
~Tomson Highway

Thursday, 22 November 2012

In checking up on what Yvonne Chartrand (Compaigni V'ni Dansi founder) & Métis celebrants across the regions are up to this month, I found a very interesting discussion on racialized language, and food.

The controversial selection of a hamburger name by a Toronto
restaurant had customers and critics raising their eyebrows this past
August. Holy Chuck Burgers,
located on Yonge Street, specializes in gourmet hamburgers, some of
which sport clever titles like “Go Chuck Yourself” and “You Fat Pig.”
Recently, the restaurant has come under criticism, not for its indulgent
offerings, but because of the names of two of its items: “The Half
Breed” and “The Dirty Drunken Half Breed.” It was not long before
Twitterverse exploded, slamming Holy Chuck Burgers for its use of
racially-charged, insensitive discourse that has had a longstanding
history against Canada’s Indigenous peoples. While the criticism was
well deserved, the apparent disconnect to Aboriginal issues is
unfortunately part of a much larger and longer colonial mentality of
indifference.

Like many racial designations in Canada, the term ‘half-breed’ is
both complex and problematic. Historically, the designation was used to
describe people of ‘mixed’ descent whose lineage originated from
intimate relationships between non-Aboriginal newcomers and Aboriginal
people. The racial designation of ‘half-breed’ was applied not only to
Métis people, but also to other Aboriginals as a way to essentialize and
deauthenticate all forms of indigenity. Today, by way of colonial
discourse, the Métis are sometimes linked to the historic understanding
of ‘half-breed.’ This was demonstrated when Holy Chuck Burgers’ racist
food names were viewed as a direct attack on Métis people. But the
equation of ‘half breed’ to Métis is intrinsically problematic, since
many Indigenous peoples are of ‘mixed’ ancestry but not labelled as
such. Nevertheless, Holy Chuck Burgers’ owner explained that the poor
selection in burger names originated from the fact that the burger
patties consist of a mixture of ground pork and beef. In “The Dirty
Drunken Half Breed,” “dirty” refers to the chili that was poured all
over the burger and “drunken” denotes the wine that was used in the
cooking preparation. When considering Holy Chuck Burgers’ choice of
language, it is difficult not to think about racial stereotypes about
Aboriginal people that have been historically imposed and, to some
extent, continue to be used.

Broadly, the Holy Chuck Burgers debacle is part of the larger context
of ignorance and systemic racism towards Canada’s Aboriginal peoples.
This was poignantly demonstrated when the restaurateur took to Twitter
to plead ignorance of any negative connotations and showed a lack of
knowledge of Canada’s Aboriginal peoples. After learning about Holy
Chuck’s latest menu items, Ryerson University Law Professor Dr. Pamela Palmater told the Toronto Star
that she doubted the sincerity of the restaurant’s claim that it was
clueless of the derogatory nature of the term. She also suggested it had
failed to adequately investigate the term or include Aboriginal peoples
in consumer focus groups. Palmater rightly contends that “racism
against Indigenous people in Canada is so ingrained that some in society
can’t even identify it when they see it.” Despite the widespread public
outcry to remove the racist language from their menu, Holy Chuck
Burgers continues to use term the “half-breed.” You can find that here.

I guess all the publicity worked, as the online menu no longer features the offensive item names: note that the initial complaints arose in August, and the above article was published (with live links as above) October 18, 2012. (View owner's apology here)

Public shaming is often the next step, when someone doing the wrong thing does not respond to being made aware that their "joke" is in fact contemptuous harm. Check out all the legion humour stories this year, if you need further examples.

A family of dog breeders runs Mestisos, so
it’s fitting that the spa takes it names from the Spanish word
“mestizos,” meaning a person of mixed ancestry. Mestisos hosts breeder
rescue weekends, during which they help neglected and abandoned dogs
find good homes. A series of educational seminars on a wide variety of
dog topics is also offered.
[source]

When I came across the sign, I understood that I was being called a dog, a Mutt, within a very specific class-race understanding of the world. Reading the company info online,a sensitive understanding of the class/race issues becomes vivid.

Personally, collectively, publically, with impunity: a shared joke between me and my world.

The
Mestizo are a people of mixed Spanish and Mayan descent representing
roughly 48% of the Belizean population. They originally arrived in
Belize in 1847 to escape La Guerra de Castas (the Caste War), when over
70,000 Maya revolted against the 20,000 Spanish throughout Yucatan,
annihilating over one-third of the population. The survivors, mostly
Mestizo, fled over the border into British territory. Additionally, many
refugees of the Caste War eventually reached western Belize by way of
Peten, Guatemala, establishing communities in Benque Viejo del Carmen,
San Ignacio, and San Jose Succotz.

The Mestizo are found everywhere in Belize but most make their homes
in the northern districts of Corozal and Orange Walk. Having merged with
the Maya in the north, this has resulted in the Yucatec Maya giving way
to the Mestizo, allowing them to lose their language and several other
cultural forms.

Since the 1980s, many thousands of refugee Mestizo from Guatemala, El
Salvador and Honduras have established communities near the capital
city of Belmopan; while those living in the Stann Creek District have
found employment in the citrus and banana industries. Descendants of the
earlier settlers also inhabit the more northerly islands on Caye
Caulker and Ambergris Caye.read more+ google for more & more

Learn about the Métis National Council Historical Online Database
This page has been put together to give our audience historical and background
information about the records and information contained in this database. You can
download all the information contained on this page in a convenient PDF guide to
print and read offline by clicking here (40MB download - be patient!).

~

also see:

... The two main questions
[Randa] Abou-Bakr tackled during her talk were, “Is translating poetry at all
possible?” and, “Why does translating poetry matter?” Although American
poet Robert Frost once said, “Poetry is what gets lost in translation,”
Abou-Bakr tells us that theoreticians have suggested several strategies
to deal with the multi-layered nature of poetry in ways that are both
meaningful and beautiful. One way is to prioritize and centralize one of
its elements over the others; for example, the sounds, the meaning, or
the meter. Others believe in approximating: adopting an approach of
dealing with a large variety of elements all at once. Abou-Bakr however,
subscribes to another school of translation, namely focusing on the
emotional resonance of the poem.

“I like to keep my
translations as close as possible to the originals in the sense that I
do not try to be a poet on my own, but rather claim to myself that I am
the prophet who has received a certain revelation — not a message — and I
am now being trusted with the sacred task of transmitting it to
others.” read full article